PM seeks orderly exit of US policy

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday called for an "orderly exit" of the easy loan policy in the US to soften the blow to emerging markets.

"Though there are encouraging signs of growth in industrialised countries, there is also a slowdown in emerging economies, which are facing the adverse impact of significant capital outflows," Singh said in a statement before his departure for Thursday’s G20 summit in Russia.

"I will emphasise in St Petersburg the need for an orderly exit from the unconventional monetary policies being pursued by the developed world for the last few years, so as to avoid damaging the growth prospects of the developing world."

The imminent scaleback of an easy loan policy in the US to claw back from its crisis of 2008 is the biggest factor hurting emerging market currencies.

A widening current account deficit (CAD) — the difference between dollar outflows and inflows — have compounded India’s problems

The rupee’s value has crashed by nearly 20% since May after US Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke hinted about a possible rollback of the monetary stimulus that involved injecting upto $85 billion every month to aid a sustained recovery in the world’s largest economy.

Emerging economies such as India have been receiving large slices of these ultra-cheap money boosting equity and currency markets. The tide has since turned with funds flocking back to locations safer home in the US.

Since June 1 - after the US Fed signalled a tapering of its stimulus - overseas funds have pulled out nearly $12 billion from India’s stock and debt markets.

India’s economic growth crashed to 4.4% during April-June - the lowest in four years - hit by a crippling industrial slowdown.

Singh said he will once again emphasise at the summit that the G20 should ensure primacy of the development dimension in his deliberation, focus on job creation, promote investment in infrastructure as the means of stimulating global growth and create potential in developing countries to sustain higher growth in the medium term.